The Mehliad

Chapter 36
Continuing the tale of young Dan Fogelberg (no not that one), who fell asleep in a storm and woke in a fantastical, creepy land. Beyond that, your guess is as good as ours.

I noticed the folks of Eg were discussing the encroaching “#slugpocalypse,” and was surprised at not only the resignation but bored acceptance. The ongoing homogenization of this world was just the latest catastrophe exploding into the city’s awareness, and this place seemed to feed off catastrophe.

A woman chastised me for prioritizing this over the gentrification of urban neighborhoods and the rent crisis. Another told me that until every rescue pit bull had a home, she couldn’t be bothered to worry. Some guy accused me of being a Russian bot. Someone else kept asking me to “slide into their DMs,” which sounded too gross to investigate further.

And a lot of people dressed like stuffed animals angrily yelled at me to accept their lifestyle despite the fact that I never said anything about it in the first place. The government here swears this place is the richest in the region but I can’t for the life of me figure out how anyone makes money.

Finally, a lead: a portal! In a jungle! Sure, a million other people said it was a million other places, but this one had that “urban legend” vibe that made it feel like it might just be real.

I told Goggles to lock in the course.